January 15/16

Ah! We’ve been busy the past few days and I haven’t had a chance to update! OK, the last thing I had said was that we were taking Elizabeth to the clinic to have her checked. Good news, all is well. She does not have an earache. She had a cold, a slight sore throat and a little bit of an upper respiratory infection – all treatable with antibiotics. It was a good visit with the doctor, we talked about how much she should be eating, how much liquid I should be giving her, etc. We got Elizabeth back to our room and started her on her meds. Let’s just say that we all had a great night’s sleep. The next morning, was Wednesday and we took it easy, giving her a chance to play in the room, stay warm, drink lots of fluids, etc. I am grateful to our Canadian friends because changing Elizabeth’s diaper was very difficult. She does not like being on her back. Well, one of our Canadian friends suggested we put a pillow behind her head so she was a little more elevated. Bingo! Much easier now to do. We also tried putting a towel in her crib for her to rest her head on, I noticed that she had used a soft doll we had put in her crib to lean her head on. Worked like a charm. So we’ve got the whole system worked out. Every morning when she wakes up, we sit on the floor and have a small handful of Cheerios while her rice cereal is being made. She is a wonderful eater, doesn’t fuss and seems to enjoy everything we give her – Baby Gerber carrots this week, applesauce and yogurt. After breakfast we get dressed and then playtime. She is obsessed with her little bowls and spoons, pretending to mix and feed herself and now us!

Usually around 11AM, Greg takes her in the stroller for a walk around the hotel and she goes out like a light – every time. She naps for about an hour to an hour and a half and then wakes for lunch. Same routine, Cheerios while cereal is being made and then we use the afternoon to go out. Afternoon nap, dinner out with our Canadian friends, she enjoys sitting in the high chairs that the restaurants have and then bedtime. Once again, Greg walks her around, and then we transfer her into the crib. Not a whimper of protest. We’ve slept great now for the past three nights. We all wake up refreshed and ready for the day.

Elizabeth now has her Vietnamese passport, she had her official checkup and is cleared for travel, and we had her visa application pictures taken yesterday so now all we are waiting on is our US Embassy interview which Mr. Haong is trying to schedule for Tuesday morning, assuming the embassy is open what with the inauguration. Otherwise, it will be on Wednesday and we can definitely return home on Saturday as planned. Today we plan to see one of Hanoi’s cultural shows – the Water Puppet Theatre. Now that everything with paperwork seems to be done, and Elizabeth is feeling better and is more comfortable with us, we plan to do some sightseeing and shopping. Greg was measured for a custom made suit – it was something we were told he should take advantage of because it is very inexpensive.

Last night out at dinner, we saw a side of Elizabeth we didn’t know existed. If you didn’t know better, she looked a bit tipsy! All of a sudden she kept singing out this one letter, “A!” Big smile on her face, looking around at all the people in the restaurant, and then the best was that she has decided that playing with my sunglasses is fun. She pulls them off my face and then has me put them back on so that she can pull them off again. Big laugh, big smile, all four of her little teeth shining, wheezing away with this laugh of hers. We all were in tears, we were laughing so hard, because we hadn’t expected it of her. The other 2 babies we have been with, Benjamin and Olivia giggle all the time, not Elizabeth, she has been the serious one so far. Now we know that she’s just been making us wait.